FC Bayern Munich has won the first playoff semi-final at Telekom Baskets Bonn.
The title contender won the second half of the main round after a strong second half with 80:68 (33:35) and takes the lead in the best-of-five series.
The second of five possible games will take place again in Bonn on Monday (8:30 p.m./Sport1 and Magentasport).
“You have to get into the series, we only managed to do that in the second half today,” said Bayern coach Andrea Trinchieri on “MagentaSport”: “It’s 1-0 now, no more and no less. Bonn will come back strong, we have to raise our level game by game.”
Bonn’s coach Tuomas Iisalo did not see his team’s best game, “You have to deliver more against one of the top teams in Europe. We have 48 hours to find solutions.”
Both teams had a surprisingly difficult time getting any points at all in the early stages.
Bonn only got their first point after four minutes from a free throw, but Bayern managed to get six points. The teams became more accurate towards the end of the first quarter. At 19:18 the first round went to the guests.
Bonn turned around the game that had been tight for a long time (35:33) before the break, although Peter Jackson-Cartwright, who was outstanding in the quarterfinals against Hamburg, was not yet in top form. The American, who was voted the best Bundesliga player, had 14 points.
FC Bayern turns up after halftime
In the second half, Bayern showed their strength. Led by Ognjen Jaramaz and Vladimir Lucic, Andrea Trinchieri’s team took a 59-51 lead after 30 minutes.
The Euroleague quarter-finalists didn’t let the lead go away and secured their first success. The best shooter was Bayern’s Lucic with 19 points.